


Nā pua muli kou, Nā pōki'i

by apple9131999



Series: The States of America [14]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Angst, Family Feels, Historical Hetalia, Territory Acquisition, adopted family, culture clash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-07
Updated: 2016-05-07
Packaged: 2018-06-06 20:38:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6769060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/apple9131999/pseuds/apple9131999
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Lili'uokalani? What's wrong? Why are you so sad?"</p><p>..."It's nothing, Makamae, don't worry..."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Nā pua muli kou, Nā pōki'i

**Author's Note:**

> Title from Hawai'i's national Anthem 'Hawai'i Pono'ī: roughly translates to 'the children after you, the young'
> 
> Makamae/Maui- Hawai’i, O’ahu- Ancient Hawai’i
> 
> Birds: Hawai’i- common Myna, Kaua’i- ‘akiapola’au, Moloka’i- iiwi, Lānaʻi- Hawai’i amakihi, Ni’ihau- ʻŌʻū , Kaho’olawe- maui ‘alauahio
> 
> Historical figures: Queen Lili’uokalani- last reigning monarch of Hawai’i, 
> 
> -Princess Kaʻiulani- Crown Princess of Hawai’i, niece of Queen Lili’uokalani 
> 
> -‘old man with a beard and floppy hair’- Sanford Dole- president of the Republic of Hawai’i

_‘lolani Palace, Honolulu, O’ahu- January 14, 1893_

* * *

Makamae was playing with Kaho’olawe when Queen Liliʻuokalani walked into the palace, followed closely by Makamae's father. Her father shook his head, but was smiling, at Makamae as she toddled over to the two of them, the small yellow bird resting on her shoulder. Liliʻuokalani smiled at the little girl as she was lifted into her father’s arms, babbling away at him.

“I think it will work, O’ahu,” Queen Liliʻuokalani said as she walked farther into the house, shaking out her hair. “I think we’ve managed to do it.”

O’ahu, who was holding out his finger for Kaho’olawe to climb onto, smiled at his queen. “I believe in you,” he said.

* * *

_January 17, 1893_

* * *

Makamae woke in the middle of the night to hushed voices over her bed and she blinked blearily as she was lifted from the bed and cradled against a soft chest. She sighed and curled up tighter as Queen Lili'uokalani held her tight to her chest.

“He came to see me today.” That was her father speaking from where he stood by her cabinet. “I don’t know how long I have until he demands I submit to him.”

“Where will you two go?” the Queen asked as she shifted from side to side, almost lulling Makamae back to sleep.

“Ni’ihau, should be far enough away to at least hinder him for a few years.”

Queen Lili’uokalani was quiet for a while, but she hummed in that way that Makamae knew to mean that she was thinking. “Why take Maui with you? Wouldn’t it be safer to keep her here with me so I can keep her safe if they do catch you?”

O’ahu was silent for a long time. “And if they kill you?”

“They won’t,” she said, her voice strong and brooking no argument. “If they don’t want a revolution on their hands, that is.”

They were silent for another long time and then there was a thunk of a bag being set on the ground. Makamae opened one bleary eye towards where her father was approaching her. He swept her into his arms and held her tight, pressing a long kiss to the top of her forehead.

 _“Ke Akua pu a hui hou,”_ he whispered into her curls. _“Ku'u momi makamae.”_

* * *

_February 1, 1893_

* * *

She wasn’t allowed outside without her Queen by her side. When she wasn’t outside, she could wander through the palace- though she wasn’t allowed to go near the American guards at the doors to the palace. Most of the time, she sat next to Lili’uokalani, drawing on a scrap paper that she had been given. Or playing with her birds, but they didn’t like to stay too long in the palace these days. She didn’t like when they went away- especially Ni’ihau, he was always gone the longest, but when he came back, he dropped off a pearl before climbing into her hair. She had a lot of them- she kept them in a box under her bed. Moloka’i and Lāna’i would stay the longest- only flying away when a guard got to close to them.

Their books had been taken days after her father had left- she wasn’t allowed to talk about him unless they were alone and even then, Lili’uokalani always looked over her shoulder as though they would be caught by the very walls around them.

Her favorite part of the day was when Lili'uokalani would pick her up and hold her so that she could see out the big window in her bedroom- where she could see the beach and the trees and the stars.

And sometimes, if she was sad and hurting, Lili'uokalani would sing for her.

_“Ha’aheo e ka ua i nā pali/ Ke nihi a’ela i ka nahele/ E uhai ana paha i ka liko/ Pua ‘āhihi lehua o uka.”_

Makamae reached out a hand to tap on the glass where, on the other side, an ʻāhihi lehua grew brightly. Lili’uokalani chuckled as she held her tighter. Makamae looked to to see the Queen’s eyes on the faraway horizon. A sadness clung to her as she lost herself for a moment, staring out to a sea that she had once been ruler of.

 _“Aloha ‘oe, aloha ‘oe,”_ Lili’uokalani whispered, her voice soft as it grew over the notes.

Makamae hiccuped on her quiet tears as Lili’uokalani started rubbing her back. She curled tighter into her arms.

_July 20, 1898_

* * *

Lili’uokalani had been acting weird for a few weeks, jumping whenever a guard dropped off food for the two of them, not letting Makamae out of her sight at all, pushing Makamae behind her skirts whenever someone walked into the room they were in, announced or not.

This morning, a guard had come with a summons for Queen Lili’uokalani and she had said she’d be down in a while. She was scared as she walked over to where Makamae was sitting, writing a letter to Princess Kaʻiulani. She laid a soft, worn hand on Makamae’s shoulder.

“Makamae, I need to go speak to the _haoles_. Don’t go anywhere.”

She nodded, staring up at her Queen. “You look sad,” she said.

Lili’uokalani faltered for a moment, “...It is nothing, Makamae. Continue writing your letter, please.”

She left, not without look back several times to make sure Makamae was in her seat.

Makamae stayed in her seat, trying to write her letter, but she kept on getting distracted and getting distracted meant that she wrote in English easier than Hawaiian, which would have been concerning if not for Lili’uokalani’s continued assurance that Makamae could do anything she wanted to do- and if it was easier sometimes to write in English, then she should because that was okay.

(Lili’uokalani always looked upset after she finished saying that and would write for a long period, barely looking up to Makamae).

She felt odd today- like the feeling she used to have when her father was still with them and not hiding out on their littlest island. Almost like-

She gasped and stood up, rushing to the window, peering down at the carriage with the American flag proudly displayed on top. She pouted, disappointed. She was sure it would have been her father if she felt like this…

There was a commotion outside of the door and she turned around just as an old man with a beard and floppy hair walked in, Queen Lili’uokalani at his side. There was a younger man that stopped at the doorway, a concerned look on his face.

“You can’t take her,” Queen Lili’uokalani said, striding purposefully past the old man who had stopped to stare at Makamae. She took Makamae’s arm and tugged her behind herself. “She belongs to me.”

The old man sneered at her. “Like I eggs’plained to yah downstairs, Miss Dominis, that little girl,” he said spitefully and pointed to where Makamae had been peeking around Lili’uokalani’s skirts, “is a protectorate of the United States and has been henceforth annexed into the United States as the Territory of Hawaii. Step _aside_ , you have no claim to her.”

“She belongs to the Hawaiian people,” Lili’uokalani argued again, backing up with Makamae to get away from the wrinkly old white man. “They have their rights to her, and as their sovereign-”

 _“Ex_ -sovereign,” the old man sneered again. “You have no more claim to your titles or to the Hawaiian people.”

“I was born here, I have more of a claim than you.”

The old man grinned maliciously. “Miss Dominis, I was also born here. And _I_ am President of Hawaii, therefore I have a greater claim than any you could demand after _you_ signed away your power.”

Lili’uokalani was silent as she stared at the old man. Her hands trembled where she held Makamae behind her, but her jaw was set as she stared at the old man. Then the young man stepped to stand between the two of them. He addressed Lili’uokalani.

“Look, I know this isn’t ideal, but we can give you tonight and part of tomorrow to say your goodbyes, but she does need to come with us tomorrow night.”

Lili’uokalani’s nod was terse and she didn’t let Makamae go from behind her until they watched the carriage leave with the two men. The Queen sank down into the chair at the desk, covering her face with her hands. Her shoulders were shaking.

“Lili’uokalani?” she asked, approaching her, tilting her head in question. “What’s wrong? Why are you so sad?”

Her hands dropped and she stared at Makamae with such despondency that Makamae was scared. Then Lili’uokalani’s mouth twisted and she bit a lip, looking with her sad eyes at Makamae. Then she sighed, “It’s nothing, Makamae...don’t worry.”

* * *

She was petting the crown of Hawai’i’s head later that night, watching the bird preen under her finger and sighing lethargically at the moon. Kaua’i was climbing on her head, occasionally peeking down at her and chirping.

The door to the room opened a crack and startled Kaua’i -who flew out of Makamae’s hair and up to her nest in the far corner of the room, squawking indignantly at Lili’uokalani. Makamae turned her palm over for Hawai’i to clamber on before turning to see Lili’uokalani in the doorway.

“Makamae,” she said softly. “Is Ni’ihau here?”

Hawai’i climbed up Makamae’s arm as she pointed with the other to where Ni’ihau was perched by the open window.

Lili’uokalani nodded and walked over to the bird, cooing softly, holding out a tanned hand. Makamae watched her for a second before looking up to Kaua’i who was still squawking up a racket. She sighed and shook her head at the bird. The bird sassed her back and she giggled, feeling Hawai’i’s wings bat at the side of her head as the bird took flight, a sharp bite from her claws before she left.

She turned to see Ni’ihau with a small paper wrapped around his leg take flight, nip at Lili’uokalani’s head good naturedly, and then land in Makamae’s hair before flying out the window into the night.

Makamae stood by Lili’uokalani as they watch the bird disappear into the darkness. She knew this time she wouldn’t get a pearl when Ni’ihau came back. She sniffled loudly at the thought. Lili’uokalani wrapped an arm around her and held her fast against her side.

“Can I take my birds?”

Lili’uokalani was silent for a long moment before she sighed and carded a hand through Makamae’s hair. “I think it would be best if they stayed with me.”

“But I want to stay with you too,” she whimpered, burying her face in Lili’uokalani’s skirts. She didn’t realize she’d started crying or that Lili’uokalani had started singing until Lāna’i and Kaho’olawe landed themselves on her head.

_“E ke onaona noho i ka lipo/ One fond embrace/ A ho’i a’e au/ Until we meet again.”_

* * *

_July 21, 1898_

* * *

“I’ll get you back,” Lili’uokalani promised when she finished dressing and packing for the crying little girl. Makamae had been crying pretty much since last night and she held tight to the hand she was offered as a guard came to the room to escort them down to the front door.

The old man from yesterday wasn’t there- but the young blonde stood at the front door, stiffly and looking rather uncomfortable. Makamae hid behind Lili’uokalani when his blue eyes fell on her.

Lili’uokalani knelt to look Makamae in the eye- not as far down as she had to in the past- and she took her hands in hers. She stared into Makamae’s watering brown eyes until the girl stopped crying. She kissed her the top of her head, lips lingering.

 _“A hui hou. Malama pono,”_ she whispered into her curls. _“Ku'u momi makamae.”_

* * *

_Honolulu Harbor, O’ahu- July 21, 1898_

* * *

Their ship left early the next morning, heading for the Big Island and then for California. Makamae- who had since been referred to singularly as Hawai’i by the blonde boy known as Alfred- couldn’t muster any of the enthusiasm she used to have when her father would take her on fishing trips when she was still little and they were still alone. Alfred had encouraged her to sleep in their suite while he went to talk to the capitan.

She pulled out the small cloth bag that she had put all of her pearls in and lined them up on the cushion of her bed. She had fifteen. She hugged her pillow to her stomach and tried not to be overwhelmed by the uncertain future in front of her.

And she tried not to listen to the birdsong outside of her window.

**Author's Note:**

> Translations:
> 
> A hui hou. Malama pono - Goodbye, until we meet again. Take care, be right.
> 
> Ku'u momi makamae - my precious pearl
> 
> Ke Akua pu a hui hou - God bless you and see you later
> 
> Ha’aheo e ka ua i nā pali/ Ke nihi a’ela i ka nahele/ E uhai ana paha i ka liko/ Pua ‘āhihi lehua o uka./ Aloha ‘oe, aloha ‘oe/ E ke onaona noho i ka lipo/ One fond embrace/ A ho’i a’e au/ Until we meet again - Aloha ‘Oe by Queen Lili’uokalani


End file.
